Gabriel John Mallouk was born on August 6, 1936 in Haifa Palestine. At the age of 5, following the death of his father and the outbreak of war in the region, his widowed mother dropped he and his younger sister at Catholic orphanages in Jerusalem and travelled with her 3 older children as refugees to Beirut.
Gabe was raised within orphanges in Jerusalem and Emmaus for the next 11 years, studying to enter the priesthood - which he almost did. By chance, a visiting priest from Beirut recognized his last name, knew his mother from Beirut, and reconnected Gabe with his lost family. He spent the next 4 years living in Beirut
In 1957 he emigrated with his family to Canada, where he held a variety of jobs in the Toronto area. In 1968 his mother invited a young visiting nurse from Holland, who worked in the same hospital, back for dinner - and that was how Gabe met his future wife, Ria. The two wed in 1969; and Steven followed in 1970, then Layla in 1972.
The family settled in Niagara Falls, where Gabe started Mallouk's Candy Kitchen - making candy himself and distributing it across Canada. A souvenir store in the tourist district followed, and ultimately Gabe became a realtor in 1974. Over the ensuing 20 years, he was awarded the Salesman of the Year for Niagara Falls 5 separate times and built up his own firm (Mariner Realty).
In addition to running his own business, Gabe was very active in his community - as a member of the Knights of Columbus, Kiwanis and Sertoma. He also became active in local politics, was a die-hard member of the Liberal Party of Canada, and ultimately served a number of city, provincial and federal politicians in their successful campaigns for office. He also ran the Downtown Board of Management, a group of merchants looking to revitalize the former core of Niagara Falls.
In 2009, after both of their kids had married and moved to the West Coast, Gabe and Ria relocated to Sidney BC (on Vancouver Island). He lived out his retirement there.
Gabe was diagnosed with dementia in his later years, but maintained frequent contact with his family. His wife, their kids and their families all had the opportunity to share meaningful time with him during his final days. He passed away peacefully, amongst loved ones, on November 24 2016.
Gabe is survived and will always be loved and remembered by his wife Ria (Sidney, BC), his son Steve Mallouk (Bellevue, WA) and Steve's family Christine, Naomi (15), Oliver(10); and his daughter Layla (Victoria, BC) and her family Scott Shea, Alia (12) and Kiera (9).
Cremation has already taken place. A Celebration of Gabe's Life will be held at 11AM on Monday, December 19 at St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church in Sidney, BC. For those planning to travel to be in attendance, please let a family member know. As we will be celebrating Gabe's life, it is not essential to wear black attire. In lieu of flowers, those wishing tomay make a memorial donation in Gabe's name to the Resthaven Foundation. The staff of the Resthaven Lodge, Gabe's home for the past 2 years, provided round the clock loving support to Gabe and the family as they went through this journey, and the family wishes to support Resthaven in providing this level of care to other families in future.
Father Sabena was the head of the Catholic orphanage that dad grew up in, and became his surrogate father figure. In 2000, we travelled back to the middle east with dad to revisit his history. Amazingly, Father Sabena was still alive (in his late 80's). We knocked on the seminary door and asked about him, they called him down from his room, and the minute he saw dad, he recognized him. The two held each other by both hands, looked into each other's eyes with tears. A few minutes later, Father Sabena went to his room, and came back with photos, postcards and letters that dad had sent him after moving to Canada.
While growing up in a Catholic orphanage in Jerusalem and Emmaus, and prior to hitting puberty, Gabe sang soprano in the boys' choir. In this photo, taken from a photo in a yearbook in 2000 that we saw at the orphanage while visiting, Dad is shown in the front middle row with the white shirt and bowtie.
